UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Dean Marie Hardin, who has led the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications since 2014 and has been a member of the Penn State faculty since 2003, was announced Jan. 30 as the 10th president of Quinnipiac University in Connecticut.
Hardin will begin work at Quinnipiac on July 1 and serve as the Bellisario College dean throughout the spring semester. Associate Dean Denise Bortree will serve as interim dean, effective June 15, and a national search for the next dean of the Bellisario College will follow.
“I have been fortunate beyond words to occupy the dean’s office in the Bellisario College at Penn State,” Hardin said. “My role has been supporter, champion, facilitator and ambassador for the work of a standout group of faculty and staff, who have helped scores of students succeed and pursue their dreams. When I leave this summer, the memories of that generosity, collegiality and dedication will propel me forward.”
During her decade leading the Bellisario College, the largest accredited mass communications program in the country, Hardin directed efforts that bolstered the program’s reputation for high-quality undergraduate and graduate education, broadened its impact in interdisciplinary research and expanded its outreach. Under Hardin’s leadership, the Bellisario College’s ongoing success has been the result of internationally renowned faculty and a highly collegial, collaborative culture fostered by employees and high-achieving, motivated students.
Among the most public moves during her tenure, Hardin led the Bellisario College’s rebranding in 2017 after securing a $30 million gift from 1961 Penn State alumnus Donald P. Bellisario. The University committed an additional $45 million in support of Hardin’s vision for a new media center, which opened in 2020.
For the first time in the history of the Bellisario College, the media center brought all departments and majors together to fulfill its mission to prepare the next generation of digital storytellers and industry leaders. The Bellisario College offers some of the largest majors at the University, and it maintains consistently robust graduation rates. Since Hardin became dean, revenue generated through online degree programs has more than tripled, and its annual research expenditures have increased more than four-fold, along with its external support for research.
“Dean Hardin has provided more than two decades of exemplary leadership and service to both the Bellisario College and the wider Penn State community,” said Penn State Interim Executive Vice President and Provost Tracy Langkilde. “Her strategic leadership and dedication to the University have provided an example that permeates Penn State and has built an exceptional reputation for the college at Penn State and far beyond. She has positioned the Bellisario College for continuing success going forward.”
Hardin has served on numerous University-wide committees and led efforts that engage other colleges at Penn State, other institutions of higher learning, and private-sector partners. She has twice been elected to lead Penn State’s Academic Leadership Council, which represents all deans and chancellors across Pennsylvania. Hardin also was part of the committee that helped to design Penn State’s budget allocation model; led a committee that designed the University’s COVID classroom response in 2020; and spearheaded the collective buy-in of units across the University to launch the Center for Immersive Experiences, which was named a signature initiative for Penn State in 2019.
Hardin served as president of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication , a nonprofit, educational association of journalism and mass communication educators, students and media professionals, in 2019. She chairs the committee for the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. She is also on the leadership board of the Alliance of Schools and Colleges of Communication and Journalism and is chair of the steering committee for the Hearst Journalism Awards Program.
Hardin’s research has focused on issues of diversity, ethics and professionalism in sports journalism. She is author of more than 60 journal articles and book chapters, and is co-editor of two books and a book series. She co-editor of the Sage journal "Communication & Sport," a leading title in the field. In 2013, the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication named her a distinguished alumni scholar.
Hardin arrived at Penn State in 2003 as an assistant professor. In 2007, she was promoted to associate professor. In 2009, she was one of four Penn State faculty recipients of the University-wide George W. Atherton Award for Excellence in Teaching. She also was appointed the Bellisario College's associate dean for administration. Hardin was promoted to associate dean for graduate studies and research in 2010. She was elevated to associate dean for undergraduate and graduate education in 2011. She was promoted to professor in 2012. She has also held leadership roles in the Arthur W. Page Center for Integrity in Public Communication and the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism.
Hardin has taught graduate and undergraduate classes that examine the interplay of sports and society. As dean, she regularly taught a large-enrollment first-year class that focused on college success and career preparation. Before joining Penn State, she taught at Florida Southern College and the State University of West Georgia. She earned her doctoral degree in 1998 from the University of Georgia.
In her new role, Hardin succeeds Judy Olian who has led Quinnipiac since 2018 and previously served as dean of the University of California, Los Angeles, Anderson School of Management from 2006 to 2018 and dean of the Smeal College of Business at Penn State from 2000 to 2006.